Conservatives to introduce new anti-terror legislation Friday: Harper

TORONTO – The Conservative government is set to introduce new anti-terrorism legislation by the end of next week aimed at giving more powers to police and security agencies, Stephen Harper said Sunday.

Harper, speaking at a campaign-style event in Ottawa, said the new laws will also make it a crime to promote terrorism and further restrict the movement of suspected extremists.

“These measures are designed to help authorities stop planned attacks, get threats off our streets, criminalize the promotion of terrorism, and prevent terrorists from travelling and recruiting others,” Harper told Conservative supporters. “It will contain a range of measures to ensure that our police and security agencies have the tools they need to meet evolving threats, and keep Canadians safe.”

The attack in Ottawa came just two days after Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent was killed after being struck by car driven by Martin Couture-Rouleau in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., near Montreal. Couture-Rouleau was shot and killed by police when he advanced on officers with a knife.